No New Wars - Hands Off Iran & Syria! Wed 1/16 Lake/Marshal Bridge .. and calls needed
Dear Peacemakers,
I am writing to extend a special invitation to you to come to the Lake Street/Marshall Avenue Bridge Vigil this Wednesday, January 18, to say "No New Wars."
We also urge you to take some time on Wednesday, January 18, to send a message to our two senators, Amy Klobuchar (612-727-5220) and Al Franken (651-221-1016) telling them you don't support war, war threats or sanctions on Iran and Syria.
No New Wars - Hands Off Iran & Syria!
Take Two Steps:
1. Attend the Lake Street/Marshall Avenue Bridge Vigil
Wednesday, January 18, 4:30 - 5:30 pm
2. Contact Senator Amy Klobuchar and Senator Al Franken
You might also want to pass on the following information to friends and family:
The U.S. has escalated its threats of military intervention against both Iran and Syria and has placed harsher sanctions on both countries. The U.S. government needs to hear that people are against these acts of hostility against these countries. We have a responsibility as Americans to try to stop all forms of U.S. aggression around the globe. We need to be ready to protest if the U.S. or one of its proxies like Israel or NATO attack Iran or Syria.
We learn from the New York Times and Washington Post on January 12 that there is a covert or "shadow" war being waged against Iran by the U.S. and Israeli forces. In addition, the U.S. is sending additional military forces to the region. The news media reports "growing tensions," with Iran, all in the name of "stopping nuclear proliferation."
We learned from the sanctions on Iraq after the Persian Gulf War that sanctions kill and target the most vulnerable members of society – particularly the elderly and children. More people were killed by U.S. sanctions on Iraq than in the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during WWII. It is imperative that we see sanctions as a deadly form of warfare on the civilian population.
The Obama administration uses the Iranian nuclear weapons program as their primary justification for a potential military attack on Iran. But who has actually used nuclear weapons? The U.S. If the president doesn't want the country of Iran to arm itself with nuclear weapons then he should try to build a peaceful relationship with Iran instead of threatening it, attacking it's scientists, and sending troops into neighboring countries like Israel.
The U.S. government is the only one to have used atomic weapons in war. After the last ten years of wars and interventions conducted on the basis of lies, with the deaths of untold thousands of poeple in Iraq and Afghanistan, the warmakers in Washington are in no position to lecture anyone about "human rights" or "weapons of mass destructions."
The U.S. also uses human rights as an excuse for intervention in both Syria and Iran. However history has shown us in Iraq that bombs don't bring people democracy, freedom, or security. Instead what occurs is military occupation, a puppet government and more opportunities for U.S. corporations. The people of Syria and Iran should determine their own political future. The U.S. does not have the right to decide who is fit to rule and should not use its military to force a government more accepting of U.S. imperialism or corporate interests into power.
We want to stop these wars BEFORE they start. Please contact your senators and tell them to stop supporting sanctions and war threats.
On this Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, we recognize that millions of people are without jobs and housing, while billions are spent on U.S. wars and interventions around the world. People need jobs, housing and health care, not more wars.
Senator Amy Klobuchar
612-727-5220
http://klobuchar.senate.gov/emailamy.cfm
Senator Al Franken
(651) 221-1016
http://franken.senate.gov/?p=contact
Organized by the Minnesota Peace Action
Peace in the Struggle,
